Scientists reject line on depleted uranium

April 19 2003By Paul BrownLondon

Hundreds of tonnes of depleted uranium used by Britain and the US in Iraq should be removed to protect the civilian population, the Royal Society - Britain's premier scientific institution - says, contradicting Pentagon claims it is not necessary.

The society's statement fuels the controversy over the use of depleted uranium, which is an effective tank destroyer and bunker-buster but is believed by many scientists to cause cancers and other severe illnesses.

The society was incensed because the Pentagon had claimed it had the backing of the society in saying depleted uranium was not dangerous.

In fact, the society said, both soldiers and civilians were in short and long-term danger.

Depleted uranium is left over after uranium is enriched for use in nuclear reactors and after reprocessing spent nuclear fuel. Thousands of tonnes of it are stored in the US and Britain.");document.write("

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Because it is effectively free and 20 per cent heavier than steel, the military experimented with it and discovered it could penetrate steel and concrete much more easily than convential weapons.

It was adopted as a standard weapon in the first Gulf War despite its radioactive content and toxic effects. It was used again in the Balkans and Afghanistan by the US.

Depleted uranium has been suspected by many campaigners of causing the unexplained cancers among Iraqis, particularly children, since the previous Gulf War. Chemicals released in the atmosphere during bombing could equally be to blame.

Among those against its use is Professor Doug Rokke, a one-time US army colonel who is also a former director of the Pentagon's depleted uranium project.

He has called on the US and Britain to "recognise the immoral consequences of their actions and assume responsibility for medical care and thorough environmental remediation".

The UN Environment Program has been tracking the use of depleted uranium in the Balkans and found it leaching into the water table.

It has recommended the decontamination of buildings where depleted uranium dust is present.

Up to 2000 tonnes has been used in the Gulf, a large part of it in cities such as Baghdad, far more than in the Balkans. UNEP has offered to go to Iraq and check on the quantities of still present and the danger it poses to civilians.

Professor Brian Spratt, chairman of the Royal Society working group on depleted uranium, said a recent study by the society had found that the soil around the impact sites of depleted uranium penetrators might be heavily contaminated.

"We recommend that fragments of depleted uranium penetrators should be removed, and areas of contamination should be identified and, where necessary, made safe," he said.